Did Gollum deserve death?

[davem]

Originally Posted by Raynor

But in this case you seem to disregard that we do actually have insight into his mind. You ignore Tolkien's opinion on Gollum, even if he is the author of the story. To quote for the nth time, he is portrayed as persistent in wickedness, refusing repentance and as damnable. All of this mean responsibility. This is not an argument from ignorance, quite the contrary. However, I have a nagging feeling I quoted this, for the nth+1 time, in vain.

He is also portrayed as pitiable, broken, confused, lonely, insane & overwhelmed by a power he cannot hope to stand against or break free from.

(and if anyone wants to know who I was referring to...)

This is not a matter of whether what Smeagol/Gollum did was 'acceptable', but of his mental state & whether that should be taken into account. Gandalf hoped for his healing, not his damnation. So did Frodo. The point is that those who encountered him responded with pity - Gandalf, Bilbo, Frodo & even, at the end, Sam. Why did they respond so? Because they saw what he had become. If he was simply 'wicked & damnable' why would he inspire pity?

It seems to me you are taking a 'Balrog's Wings' approach here - Tolkien uses the word 'wings' & you take it literally. Tolkien uses the word 'wicked' & you reduce Smeagol to a two dimensional pantomime villain. Gollum is probably the most complex, multi-faceted character Tolkien ever created (in comparison to whom many of his other characters are reduced to pastel shades or simple black & white). This simplistic 'he was wicked' approach misses the whole point of the character. Tolkien is showing us a being racked by the consequences of his own wrong choices, broken by his own wifullness, & whose very mind & being is shattered until he becomes an embodiment of chaos, his identity fragmented into jagged shards which constantly rip & tear at any remnant of his original self that may have survived.